A national campaign calling for the Free School Meal initiative to be extended for all children in primary school has been launched, with a Birmingham headteacher lending her support.
Campaign for universal free school meals
The National Education Union is urging the Prime Minister to extend the scheme to encompass all children of primary age. The No Child Left Behind campaign, established in 2022, aims to combat poverty seen in schools daily.
Tania Yasmin, executive headteacher at Greet Primary School, is one of the education leaders backing Free School Meals (FSM) for all children in state primary schools in England.
Currently, all state-school pupils in reception, year one, and year two receive free lunches. From year three, eligibility is based on household benefits. The Government plans to extend FSM in September to all primary children whose households receive Universal Credit.
Headteacher's plea to government
Speaking to BirminghamLive, Tania said: "I would ask the Government and the Prime Minister, 'Would you tolerate this for your own children and your own families and yourself? If not, then you have a duty not to tolerate this for the children you are serving, which is all of our children.'"
The headteacher shared what she believes needs to be done in Birmingham and across England: "We've seen it done in London and it's happening in Wales - it's Free School Meals for all primary children. It's a simple strategy, and that would eliminate so much of the stigma, it would eliminate so much of the bureaucracy."
She highlighted that some families eligible for FSM may not access it due to bureaucracy and lack of understanding: "There are other families who may be eligible, but the bureaucracy and the lack of understanding around that sometimes then stops - and then schools are burdened with going - you know, you might be eligible."
Tania concluded that extending FSM would be a "huge investment" in closing the disadvantage gap: "That would be a huge investment in closing the disadvantage gap. We're doing that in lots of places and the Government is trying and is doing that. But this is the part that I think is missing and this is the part that we should have finished first before we did anything else, because if you're hungry, you're not going to learn anything."
The No Child Left Behind campaign is currently asking Brummies to sign the petition urging the Prime Minister to extend Free School Meals to every primary school child in the country.
